Literary Las Vegas: Tony Ciaglia, Pete Earley

Literary Las Vegas

Tony Ciaglia, now a Las Vegas resident, was a normal 15-year-old kid until a traumatic brain injury left him fighting partial paralysis and struggling to control bursts of rage.

Abandoned by his friends, he started writing to serial killers on a whim and found they trusted him and were willing to share their secrets with him. After investigators from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children asked for his help in an unsolved murder, Ciaglia began searches of his own. The bestselling book "The Serial Killer Whisperer," written by Pete Earley, shares Ciaglia's story.

Readers are invited to an event for the book at noon Saturday at the 8915 W. Charleston Blvd. Barnes & Noble. For more information, visit tonyciaglia.com.

Excerpt from "The Serial Killer Whisperer"

Of all the serial killers that Tony corresponded with, Metheny was the most callous and graphic in describing his sexual debauchery. There was a cold-bloodedness about him that astounded Tony's family. When one of Crystal's friends died from cystic fibrosis, Tony wrote a short story about how angels had carried her to heaven. He'd sent copies to Metheny and his other serial killer pals. Nearly all of them wrote back and told him that his story was touching.

Except Metheny.

"Your story brought tears to my eyes," Metheny wrote sarcastically. "C'mon Tony, you're going to have to do better than that if you want to make me to cry."